Press review: Putin slams Kiev law on indigenous peoples, Turkey seeks calm on S-400s – Press review

Nezavisimaya Gazeta: Turkey seeks to calm markets on S-400 deal

The Biden administration has obtained written assurances from Turkey that it will not activate the Russian S-400 missile defense system. According to Turkish media, it was important for Washington to get Ankara’s pledge and submit it to Congress in case a discussion takes place on the issue of revoking the sanctions previously imposed under the Anti-Humanitarian Law. America’s adversaries through sanctions (CAATSA), writes Nezavisimaya Gazeta. .

As part of the American plan, American experts will check whether the S-400 system bought by Ankara is operational. The issue of Russia’s missile defense system is expected to be raised during talks between US President Joe Biden and his Turkish counterpart Recep Tayyip Erdogan, scheduled for June 14 on the sidelines of the NATO summit. Meanwhile, the Hurriyet newspaper writes that the concessions on the S-400 would mean a loss of sovereignty. The Biden administration shows no willingness to take action to end cooperation with Kurdish armed groups in northern Syria and fugitive cleric Fethullah Gulen, accused of staging the failed 2016 coup. Turkey seeks to focus the agenda of the talks between Biden and Erdogan only on areas where cooperation between the two NATO allies is still possible.

“The CAATSA sanctions imposed by President Trump on Turkey in December 2020 for the purchase of the S-400 by Ankara were envisioned by specific provisions of the 2021 defense budget, which Congress adopted to a two-party majority without the right of veto, ”he added. Turkish Program of the Foundation for the Defense of Democracies (FDD) Aykan Erdemir told Nezavisimaya Gazeta.

Under this legislation, Ankara’s written commitment not to activate the S-400 system will not be enough to reverse the sanctions, he noted. “According to the document, the US demands go far beyond what pro-government media in Turkey are allowed to report. It seems that at present Washington and Ankara have little room for any compromise.” According to the analyst, the Turkish government expects the news “on the conclusion of a deal with the United States to calm the markets and alleviate the current financial crisis in the country”.

Media: Geneva summit agenda may change when presidents meet

A week before the Geneva summit between the Russian and American leaders, Moscow raised some issues that Russia plans to raise on June 16. Vladimir Putin awaits Joe Biden’s response to the proposals previously made for the United States: to impose a moratorium on the deployment of land -based intermediate and short-range missiles to Europe and resumption of cooperation in cyberspace. Meanwhile, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov named the key conditions for the normalization of bilateral relations, but made it clear that Moscow does not expect any progress in the Geneva talks, writes Kommersant.

According to Lavrov, first of all, the US administration should assess the measures, interests and position of Russia and its red lines. Second, it must learn from the mistakes made in recent years. Third, he should refuse to dialogue solely from the position of claiming hegemony in world affairs. The normalization of Russian-American relations is only possible if the principles of equality, mutual respect and non-interference in the internal affairs of each are respected. Meanwhile, Lavrov said the presidents would not follow the agreed-upon agenda of the talks. “With the Americans, we just named some issues, which both sides want to discuss, and we are doing it this time too,” he said.

Russian Academy of Sciences Institute of World Economy and International Relations director Fedor Voytolovsky told Izvestia that meeting between Russian and US presidents would not make a major breakthrough but set the tone to new contacts between Moscow and Washington. According to the expert, bilateral relations are currently in such a deep crisis that any compromise is only possible on certain issues.

However, he noted that it will be easier for Biden to talk to Putin compared to his predecessor Donald Trump. “Biden is in a better position, he has discretion. He has always been quite tough on Russia. Nobody accuses the Democratic Party that the Russians meddled with him. and supported them in the election. Another thing is that some are right – wing groups and Republicans have a pretty hard stance on arms control issues. If Biden agrees with us on something , some counterattack is expected in Congress. But Biden does not have that domestic political pressure. And that means there is a great window of opportunity for a pragmatic and measured dialogue. However, a single meeting will not bear fruit. no fruit “.

Izvestia: Putin castigates Kyiv law on indigenous peoples

Ukraine’s law on indigenous peoples goes against international humanitarian law, Russian President Vladimir Putin said in an interview with Rossiya TV channel. According to him, dividing people into certain categories is reminiscent of the theories and practices of Nazi Germany. The president believes that this law will oblige local citizens of the neighboring state to move abroad or rewrite their nationality. In addition, Putin said Kiev was unwilling to abide by the Minsk peace deal and also commented on Kiev’s possible NATO membership. He stressed that the discussion on Ukraine’s NATO membership was not just a gossip, especially since bringing the alliance’s military infrastructure closer to Russia’s borders would reduce the time needed. missiles to reach Moscow.

The Chairman of the Committee on CIS Affairs, Eurasian Integration and Relations with Compatriots of the State Duma, Leonid Kalashnikov, told Izvestia that the law on indigenous peoples poses a threat to Russians in Ukraine. “All of this must be seen as a political gesture. They must attract the attention of the world community.”

According to the director of the Institute for Peacekeeping Initiatives and Conflictology Denis Denisov, the media hype around this Ukrainian law is excessive. He believes that this document targets three peoples living in Crimea and is absurd in its sense. “The authors of the law have just set out their views on the term“ indigenous peoples. ”The document has no Russian, Polish, Bulgarian, Hungarian and other Ukrainian peoples. Meanwhile, the law cannot be applied since Kiev does not control Crimea, “he added to the newspaper.

The expert also noted that Ukraine had not yet received the action plan for NATO membership. Amid US statements about the need for a dialogue with Russia on strategic stability, the question of what action plan for Ukraine is trivial. In addition, Washington says there will be no such plan. “France, Germany and others are against it. They are not ready to provide the action plan for membership, they believe it is inadvisable.”

Nezavisimaya Gazeta: US and EU prepare to coordinate anti-Russian measures

US President Joe Biden’s European tour and his June 16 talks with Russian leader Vladimir Putin could change the West’s policy toward Russia. At the EU-US summit on June 15, a council should be set up, which will aim to coordinate the two allies’ demarches on Moscow. In light of this, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov spoke about the difference between Russia and the West. According to him, the EU and the United States want to promote their democratic program across the world and destroy the international order created after World War II. On the contrary, Moscow has no global ambitions.

The head of the department of social and political studies of the European Institute of the Russian Academy of Sciences, Vladimir Shveitser, told Nezavisimaya Gazeta that the plans to create this council are “a radical departure from the line led by Donald Trump “. “He [Trump] tried to isolate the United States as much as possible from European affairs. Now Joe Biden is looking for allies, on the contrary. The United States will have talks not only with Russia, but also with China. And there are issues where he has to seek consensus with all parties involved. And in this case, the EU states are such a concerned party, ”said the expert.

Biden and his administration have repeatedly stated that they will take Europe into account in the conduct of their foreign policy. The evident crisis in the West’s relations with Russia is a sort of litmus test of whether the new US president’s words match his actions. Now Americans and EU officials are playing their unusual roles. Under the Trump administration, major EU countries called for a softer Russian policy. Now, on the contrary, the EU demands a tougher policy against Moscow. In recent months, Brussels has imposed anti-Russian sanctions and Washington only introduced such measures after the EU, the newspaper writes.

Vedomosti: Gazprom launches a major helium production plant

The first line of the Amur gas processing plant, which can produce 7 billion m3 of natural gas per year, was launched on June 9. The company is located in the Amur region of the Far East. Construction started in 2015 and after commissioning by 2025, the plant will consist of six lines with a total capacity of 42 billion m3. Russian President Vladimir Putin said the price of the project will exceed 1 billion rubles ($ 13.8 billion).

The plant is expected to become the second in the world in terms of gas treatment after the central gas installation of the American unit Prudhoe Bay and the first in terms of helium production (60 mln tonnes per year). According to Gazprom, helium from the d’Amour gas processing plant will be exported. According to Putin, Russia today only holds 3% of the global helium market. Once construction is complete, Russia could climb to one of the top positions among exporters. According to the Statista service, in 2020, the world leaders in helium production were the United States (74 million m3), Qatar (45 million m3) and Algeria (14 million m3). Russia, with a production volume of 5 million cubic meters, was in fourth place.

The main advantage of the d’Amour gas processing plant will be its low logistics expenses due to its convenient location close to the main markets in Asia, namely China, the director of the rating group d told Vedomosti. company of ACRA, Vasily Tanurkov. Once the plant reaches full capacity, Gazprom will occupy nearly a quarter of the global helium market, said Ronald Smith, senior analyst at BCS Global Markets. Now there is a trend in the United States to reduce helium production due to the depletion of helium resources.

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